Birthday Wishes
by barbarella-1980
Summary: Birthday themed Gadge
1. The Wish

For Celeste who wished for drunk Gadge fluff for her birthday. Happy Birthday and I hope all your birthday wishes come true.

It starts when she meets her father for lunch at his favorite restaurant. He insists on splurging on a particularly expensive bottle of wine because it's from the year she was born and that was a good year, "for daughters, and for wine."

The wine is good, but two glasses was too many and she's tipsy for the rest of the afternoon. When work is finished, her colleagues drag her to a cocktail bar around the corner from the office and refuse to let her leave until she's had a Pina Colada. (The second Pina Colada was entirely her own choice.)

She meets her friends for dinner at her favorite restaurant. She tries to be sensible and only drink water with her meal, but fuck it; it's her birthday, so she has a couple of glasses of wine with her salmon. And another to wash down the delicious triple-chocolate cake that Katniss has brought from her boyfriend Peeta's bakery.

After the restaurant they adjourn to the bar downstairs and someone (Johanna) orders a round of tequila shots.

It's fair to say that at this point in the evening, Madge is hammered.

"There was no candle," she suddenly pouts. "There was no candle on the cake so I never got to make my birthday wish."

"We can't have that," Johanna declares before pushing her way through the crowd towards the bar. She comes back moments later with a candle and a lighter.

Katniss produces the remains of the chocolate cake from the box she's carrying it in and Johanna sticks the candle in the cake and lights it. Madge happily blows the candle out and beams proudly at her friends.

"Did you make your wish?" Delly asks.

Madge's eyes widen in alarm. She clasps her hands to her mouth. "No, I forgot."

Johanna laughs and lights the candle again. Madge closes her eyes tightly and wishes. Then she blows on the candles again. She's giggling so much it takes her four attempts.

Satisfied that she has completed her task, Madge throws back her tequila shot and beckons for another.

"What did you wish for?" Delly inquires.

Normally, Madge would never, ever divulge her most secret wish to anybody, even her closest friends. But she's just had her third tequila shot, so...

"I wished the same wish that I wish every time I wished since I was twelve years old," Madge says, very seriously, staring directly into the eyes of one of the Dellys standing in front of her. (And the real Delly's left ear.)

"And what was that?"

"I wish…" Madge pauses and giggles again. "Wisssshhhh," she enjoys the effervescent feel of the word in her mouth. "I wished for a birthday kiss from Gale Hawthorne."

Madge is too drunk and too busy consuming the slice of birthday cake to notice the devious glint in Johanna's eyes. She barely even notices as her friends haul her out of the seat and hustle her into a taxi.

In fact, she hasn't even realized they've left the bar until she suddenly finds herself standing on the sidewalk under Gale Hawthorne's apartment. Even in her very drunk stupor, she knows it's Gale's apartment building.

"What are we doin' here?" She asks, still giggling.

"We're going to get you that birthday kiss," Johanna announces. Then she cups her hands around her mouth and yells. "GAAAAAAAAAAAAALE. GALE HAWTHORNE. GET YOUR ASS DOWN HERE."

Katniss and Delly follow suit, though they're laughing pretty hard so their shouts are mostly ineffective. (Nobody is sober enough to suggest using the buzzer to get Gale's attention.)

The windows of Gale's apartment remain dark, but eventually one of his neighbors sticks his head through a window to tell them to 'shut the fuck up'.

"We're not leaving until Gale Hawthorne gets his ass down here and lays one on the birthday girl," Johanna informs the neighbor Madge grins and waves up at him.

The neighbor huffs and disappears for a few minutes before coming back to the window to inform them that Gale isn't home yet.

"Maybe he's still at work," Katniss guesses.

So Madge is bundled into another taxi, and minutes later they're all standing in the lobby of City Hall where a humorless security guard refuses them entry, though after a brief argument with Jo he does agree to call Gale's office for them. But there's no answer and the guard herds them back outside.

"Now what?" Johanna asks.

It's Delly who comes up with a suggestion this time. "I know. Thom said he was going to watch a game with Gale tonight. I'll call him and see where they are."

One phone call later, they're climbing into another taxi bound for the sports bar where Thom and Gale are watching a basketball game.

The bar is packed, but Katniss cuts a meandering path through the crowd and the others follow behind her unsteadily, until eventually she finds Gale and Thom.

Delly leaps into her Thom's arms and sloppily kisses her boyfriend. Gale eyes them all curiously and grins. "What are you ladies doing here?"

"Madge would like a birthday kiss from you," Katniss informs him matter-of-factly.

Johanna gives Madge a push and she falls onto Gale who manages to catch her before she topples over him. Madge settles onto his lap with a giggle and wraps her arm around his neck.

Gale stares in astonishment at the normally reserved and demure blonde sitting on his knee. "Are you drunk?"

"Yes," she answers. "Now kiss me."

"I don't think that's a good idea," Gale says. He winces at the smell of alcohol on her breath.

But Johanna's having none of it. She begins to chant. "Kiss her. Kiss her." Katniss and Delly quickly join in. Thom lends his support, stomping his feet and banging on the table in time to the chants. Johanna encourages others around them and before long most of the bar is roaring for Gale to kiss Madge.

Madge, sitting calmly on Gale's knee, just smiles at him. He shoots at glare at the ringleaders before quickly pressing his lips to Madge's. She barely has time to register that he's kissing her, before he pulls away again.

The cheers quickly turn to boos and a new chant, led by Johanna, starts. "With tongue. With tongue."

Gale tries to protest. He doesn't like kissing drunk girls, but he doesn't really get the chance, because Madge decides to take matters into her own hands. She slides closer to him, so that she's flush against his chest (and other body parts) and brings her mouth to his. It's her tongue that invades his mouth first and all Gale's protests die away. His arms come around her waist as he holds her close and Madge runs her fingers through his hair as she's dreamed of doing for years now.

They're both oblivious to the cheers and whistles all around them as they sink deeper into this kiss. Their lips and tongues meld together and Madge presses ever closer to Gale. One of his hands is holding her face now and it's electric.

When she moans, it brings him back to his senses, and he breaks the kiss. His eyes remains locked on hers and their foreheads touch.

"Happy birthday, Madge," he whispers.

Madge smiles hazily at him. "Gale, I think I'm going to throw up."

(The next morning, Gale shows up at her apartment with a bacon sandwich and strong coffee. He stays with her until her hangover no longer makes her want to die and then he kisses her again. A lot.)


	2. The Stripper

This was written for Finnickodone on tumblr. As it's another birthday themed one-shot, I thought I'd just add it here instead of creating a new story. I may continue to add to this, if inspiration strikes.

Madge stepped into the elevator and pressed the button for the eighth floor. As it ascended, she bounced excitedly on her toes and giggled with anticipation.

She didn't know what was awaiting her in her apartment, but she knew _something_ was. She wasn't supposed to even know that much, but Katniss had given the game away by calling her five times that day to find how exactly what time she'd be home at. Subtly was a art form that was completely lost on Katniss.

As an only child, with few friends growing up, Madge's birthdays were usually a small celebration with her parents. In college she'd been content to have a few quiet drinks with her friends. She'd told Katniss and her other friends that all she'd wanted this year was a nice meal with her friends, maybe some drinks afterwards. They'd even booked a table at her favorite restaurant for Friday night. Madge had refused to contemplate doing anything on her actual birthday because she has early mornings all week.

In the past, Katniss would have been happy to go along with that but since she'd started seeing Peeta Mellark, Katniss had developed something of a wild streak. Though sometimes Madge was sure it had less to do with Peeta and more to do with his friend Johanna Mason. Jo was becoming a very good friend of both Katniss and Madge, and Madge was sure that whatever surprise was waiting for her behind the apartment door had Jo's name all over it.

Madge fluffed her hair, straightened her dress and unlocked the apartment door. She made sure to make some noise and open the door slowly, to alert whoever was inside that she was home.

The apartment was in darkness. Madge held in her giggle and groped for a light, bracing herself for a surprise. She flicked the switch and...

Nothing.

She was alone. The apartment was empty. Katniss' coat was strewn across the back of the couch, but there was no sign of it's owner. Madge shook it out of it's crumpled state and hung it carefully on the rack. Then she flopped onto the couch.

Despite insisting that she only wanted a quiet meal, her excitement had been building all day once she'd figured out that Katniss had something planned. Obviously, she'd misread the signals. Maybe Katniss had plans with Peeta and just wanted to know if Madge would be home to play third wheel.

Madge sighed and pushed herself off the couch. She kicked off her heels and padded barefoot to the kitchen where she dug out a bottle of red wine from a cupboard and poured herself a generous glass. She'd was just pondering ordering take-out when her phone rang. She hurried back to the living room to answer it before it went to voicemail.

"Madge, where are you?" Katniss asked, sounding frantic.

"I'm at home," Madge answered, but she furrowed her brow. Was she supposed to be somewhere else?

"Oh god, I'm so sorry. We were supposed to be back before you got home but there's a fire in a warehouse on Cardew and traffic is just insane. We have moved two inches in the last forty minutes. I'm so sorry."

"It's fine," Madge assured her, feeling relieved that her birthday hadn't been forgotten. "Why are you over on Cardew?"

"I had to do an errand," Katniss said. She was almost drowned out by the sound of raucous laughter in the background.

"Who's with you?" Madge asked.

"Jo, Annie and Delly. We'll be back as soon as we can. We're going to grab pizza on the way, so don't have anything to eat," Katniss instructed. "It looks like it's starting to move so hopefully we'll be back soon. I-"

Katniss was cut off and Jo's voice replaced her. "There's a surprise on the way and if it gets there before we do, don't you dare open or I will slit your throat."

"I won't," Madge promised, her excitement soaring again. "I'll see you soon."

"I hope so, I'm about three minutes from killing Delly," Jo said before hanging up.

Re-energized by the phone call, Madge put on some music, turned the volume up and scurried into her bedroom and changed out of her pants suit into a tank top and yoga pants and pulled her hair into a messy bun.

She was dancing around the living room, singing along to Little Mix when the door buzzer sounded. Madge bopped her way over and picked up the receiver. "Hello," she sing-songed cheerfully.

"Katniss?" A male voice crackled over the intercom.

"No, this is Madge," she replied. She didn't recognize the voice so she peered at the tiny screen.

Her mouth fell open. Even on the tiny, grainy, black and white screen, the man she was speaking to was probably one of the most gorgeous men she had ever seen. To make matters even better, he was wearing a military uniform. A real military uniform with and a hat and everything.

Handsome men in military uniforms did funny things to Madge's lady parts.

He was talking, saying something about Katniss Everdeen expecting him. Madge shook her head to clear her thoughts.

"She's not here at the moment," Madge told him.

"I know, I was talking to her on the phone," the man said, he waggled his phone at the camera as proof. "She said to wait for her in the apartment."

"Oh..." Madge wondered what on earth Katniss could possibly want with a soldier and wracked her brains trying to remember if Katniss had mentioned anything but came up empty-handed. "Um, alright." She pressed the button to admit him to the building and hung up.

Then she caught sight of herself in the mirror and gave a little shriek at her own hideous reflection.

Madge dashed back into her room, put her bra back on exchanged her tank top for the first cute top she could lay her hands on. She released her hair from the bun and ran a brush through it. She was considering putting on some make up when there was a sharp rap on the door, so she had to settle for a quick swipe of her glossy lip balm before she hurried back to the door.

She took a deep, calming breath before opening the door to the most gorgeous man she'd ever seen in real life.

He was the absolute embodiment of the 'tall, dark and handsome' cliche. His crisp, tailored uniform just amplified the effect. Madge had to grasp the door to steady herself. "Hi," she said, her voice high-pitched in her own ears.

"Hey," he greeted. "I'm Gale Hawthorne."

He held out his hand for her to shake. Madge had to suppress the squeak that wanted to escape when she touched him for the first time. "Come in. I'm Madge. Katniss' friend and roommate, Madge."

"You're the birthday girl?" Gale asked as he stepped into their apartment.

Madge wondered how he knew that. Then it hit her.

The surprise that Jo had been telling her not to open – they had hired her a stripper!

She didn't know if she was horrified or thrilled.

Because while she definitely wanted to see Gale naked, the idea of him stripping down in front of her while others watched was utterly mortifying. How could her friends do this to her? She was going to kill Jo.

Gale finished his survey of the apartment and looked back at her with a smile. "Nice place."

His smile transformed his face from sexy, brooding man to handsome, friendly boy. A billion butterflies erupted in Madge's stomach. OK, maybe this wouldn't be so bad.

He watched her expectantly. Madge remembered her manners with a jolt. "Please, sit," she offered. "Um, Katniss and the others should be here soon. I hope. It depends on traffic."

"Yeah, it's pretty bad out there," Gale informed her. "I was lucky, I think they closed some streets off just after I got through." He placed his hat on a side table and reached for a button on his jacket.

"NO!" Madge blurted out. "Um, no you have to wait. Please. Don't, um, don't do any of uh, that, until the others get here please."

Gale's brow furrowed, but he shrugged. "Alright." He took a seat and grinned at her.

"Can I get you a drink?" Madge asked, looking around for her wine glass. She needed alcohol urgently. She grabbed the glass and gulped the contents.

"I'd kill for a beer, if you have one, please," Gale said.

"Sure." Madge dashed into the kitchen and found a beer in the fridge and replenished her glass of wine.

As she handed Gale the beer, her eyes roved over his broad chest and lit on his name badge. _Hawthorne_.

"Oh, I get it," she giggled. "Hawthorne. _Hawt_. That's clever."

Gale stared at her, then glanced down at his name badge, and back up at her. "Uh, thanks."

Madge took a seat opposite him and sipped nervously from her wine.

Gale shifted in his seat and tugged the collar of his uniform. Madge guessed he was hot, but she didn't want to ask him to take his coat off in case he was naked and oiled up under it. That would be just so weird.

"Are you having a good birthday?" Gale asked, interrupting her thoughts of his glistening chest.

She nodded, feeling her cheeks heat up. "It's been pretty quiet. I didn't tell anyone at work and my dad is away on a business trip this week so I won't celebrate it with my parents until the weekend. I thought tonight was going to be a quiet night in with the girls too. So this is a pretty huge surprise for me."

"I hope you don't mind me being here. I don't want to upset your birthday plans," Gale said.

"No, it's fine, it's just weird right now," Madge was quick to reassure him. "I mean, it's just that I really wasn't expecting any of this. I'm not really sure how to act. And then the other girls aren't here so this is a weird situation for me. I had no idea you were going to be here. It's fun, though. I mean, it's a fun idea and I'm sure it will be great once the others get home... It must be weird for you too."

"Growing weirder by the second," Gale said, half under his breath. He pulled his phone out of his pocket and checked it.

"Oh, I never considered... do you have another appointment after this?" Madge asked. If he needed to go, should she let him? Had he been paid already? What if he had and he needed to do his act before he could leave? Or what if he left without doing his act?

Gale pocketed his phone and shook his head. "Nope, no further appointments tonight."

Madge breathed a sigh of relief and silently prayed that Katniss and the others would hurry up and get home.

They watched each other in silence for a moment until Madge felt the need to break the ice. "How did you get into this line of work?" she asked as conversationally as she could, then cringed. Are you allowed to ask strippers that?

Gale didn't seem to mind. "Well, college was out of the question for me. I have a lot of younger siblings, so I needed to start working right away. It was either this or the coal mines, so it was a no-brainer for me," he told her.

"How long do you think you'll do it for?"

Gale paused to take a sip of his beer and contemplate her question. "I'm not sure, really. Not forever. I don't want to be doing this when I'm married. I don't think that would be fair to my wife, especially if we have kids. I have been thinking of maybe going to college after my next tour."

"Oh, you're going on tour? That must be exciting," Madge said. "Do you go alone or is there a group of you?"

"There's a whole troop... An army of us, even," Gale said. He was giving her a weird look, like that was a strange question.

"That must be fun," Madge said lamely.

Gale's brow was even more furrowed. "You're a law student, right? I'm not confusing you with another of Katniss' friends?"

She nodded. "No. I mean, yes, I mean, you're not confused. But I actually just graduated, and I'm working in a firm downtown."

Gale nodded at her explanation but he still looked confused.

Madge took another mouthful of wine. "So, um, Katniss told you about me?"

"Of course."

"Is that so you can tailor your act?" Madge asked, she took in his dashing uniform again. She remembered telling Katniss once that she loved a man in uniform.

"Huh?"

There was a knock on the apartment door and Madge sprang from her seat and rushed to answer it, thrilled for an interruption to the awkwardness. She flung the door open to find Peeta holding a large pink cake box.

"Peeta, hi," Madge exclaimed. She hauled him into the apartment.

"Happy birthday," he said, wrapping one arm around her in a hug and kissing her cheek. "Katniss and the others will be here in about fifteen minutes."

"Oh, thank goodness," Madge smiled.

Gale rose from his set and came towards them. Madge bit her lip nervously. How do you introduce a stripper to the boyfriend of the girl who hired the stripper? "Um, Peeta this is Gale. Gale, this is Peeta. He's Katniss' boyfriend."

Gale and Peeta eyed each other, up as they shook hands, both standing to their full heights. Madge noticed that they were both grasping quite firmly. Then after a moment they both smiled, and the apparent tension between them dissolved.

"It's good to meet you. I've heard a lot about you," Peeta said, to Madge's surprise. She didn't think that Peeta had much to worry about, but she was shocked he wasn't a little more bothered by the tall, gorgeous male stripper in his girlfriend's apartment.

"You too," Gale said.

Maybe Peeta didn't know that Gale was a stripper? Oh, God, what was she going to do? Madge didn't know him well enough to know if he was the jealous type. Oh, this was a disaster. "Peeta, what's in the box?" she asked loudly, to interrupt the conversation between the two men.

She flipped the lid of the box and instantly wished she hadn't.

"A penis cake, of course," she sighed. Seemed there was a theme for tonight's festivities.

"I wasn't supposed to let you do that," Peeta told her. He covered the box again. "Try and act surprised when Jo gets here. She's so excited about this cake."

She immediately felt her cheeks burn as she glanced up at Gale. He was watching her with a puzzled look on his face. He looked away when she caught his eye. Madge wondered just how much of him she would be seeing tonight. Would she see the whole package? Did she want to? Was the cake a consolation for what she wouldn't get to see?

She wished she could ask Gale what to expect so she could be mentally prepared for whatever lay ahead. But she couldn't ask him now, with Peeta there.

"Madge, are you alright? You looked a little flushed," Gale said. He put his hand on her shoulder and she nearly jumped at the contact.

"I'm f-f-fine," she stuttered.

"Why don't you sit down," he said, guiding her back to the couch. Madge couldn't help but notice that he smelled wonderful. "I'll get some water for you."

"Thanks," she murmured meekly. She covered her face with her hands and was surprised at how hot her skin felt.

Gale came back from the kitchen with a glass of water for her and a bottle of beer for Peeta.

"Oh, you're staying?" Madge said to Peeta. So, he didn't know that Gale was a stripper.

Peeta paused in the act of opening his beer. "Uh, well, yeah. Is that OK?"

"Of course, of course," Madge told him. She wondered if it sounded as fake to him as it did to her. She looked over at Gale to see his reaction. Maybe he wouldn't want a guy there when he performed. But Gale seemed happy enough to have Peeta stay. He'd given him the beer after all.

Maybe he was gay! Why did that thought leave such a bad taste in Madge's mouth?

"Did you make the cake yourself, Peeta? Gale asked.

"No. Well, actually, yes, I made the cake and the strawberry filling. But I have a friend who does cake modeling and he sculpted it. Katniss was on her way over to collect it tonight, but she never got there because traffic is chaotic. But I managed to get through on my bike."

"You ride a bike?" Gale said, impressed.

Madge's nose wrinkled. God, he was gay. That was depressing.

"A bicycle," Peeta corrected with a laugh. "That's a little different to what you're used to riding."

Gale laughed in response. Madge felt lost. What on earth did Gale ride? She had a vision of him on top of some sort of mechanical bull, his thighs clenching, his shirt flapping open.

Oh god, what was wrong with her?

"You're flushed again," Gale said. Both men were now watching her with concern.

Thankfully, Katniss and Jo cam bursting through the door with Annie and Delly hot on their heels and Madge was saved from having to think of an excuse to explain away the symptoms of her physical arousal.

To Madge's immense surprise, Katniss completely by-passed Peeta, and went straight to Gale. She threw her arms around him and squeezed long and tight. The other girls all greeted Madge and wished her a happy birthday, which she barely even registered as she was watching Katniss and Gale hug.

Finally, Katniss pulled away and Madge could see tears in her eyes, though none fell. She pulled Gale over to her friends. "Guys, this is my best friend in the world, Gale Hawthorne. Gale, you met Madge and Peeta, this is Jo, Annie and Delly."

"Hello, sailor," Jo flirted.

Gale laughed.

Delly stepped forward and shook Gale's hand. "Thank you for your service to our country," she said genuinely.

Gale looked a little uncomfortable but he accepted her gratitude with a gracious smile.

"Wait, wait," Madge said. "Do you mean that you really are a soldier?" She was feeling very confused. And like she'd grabbed the wrong end of the stick.

Gale looked down at his uniform pointedly then nodded. "Yes. A sergeant actually."

Madge could hear the silent, collective 'd'uh' from her other friends and then the pieces came together.

"You're Gale! You're the friend in the army." Madge said. God, she was so stupid.

"You didn't introduce yourself?" Katniss chided Gale.

"I did," Gale protested, giving Madge that weird look again.

Madge could barely hear over the sound of blood rushing to her head. "He did but I didn't put it together. I thought you meant Gail, like a girl. Let's have cake." Please let this conversation end right now, she prayed.

"Who did you think he was?" Jo asked.

"Yeah, what were all those questions about if..." Gale trailed off, and Madge could see the realization dawn in his eyes. His cheeks even flushed a little.

Madge silently pleaded with him not to say anything.

He didn't have to because Jo had worked it out. "You thought he was a stripper," she hooted.

Madge wanted to die.

She wanted to die immediately. Right there and then. She wanted her body to turn to dust instantly and disappear into the carpet. She wanted all existence of herself to be wiped from the earth and the memory of herself wiped from the mind of everybody who knew her. Because that was the only way she could ever get over this embarrassment.

There was a lot of laughter and teasing, which Madge tried to go along with, but really all she wanted to do was curl up in a ball and die.

Peeta brought out the cake and Madge tried to act shock and surprised for Johanna's sake. But Madge had expected to be seeing an actual penis attached to a human male, so a cake, no matter what the shape, really wasn't that shocking at all.

They sat around eating cake and drinking the wine and beer, and slowly Madge's deep embarrassment began to fade and she joined in the chat and laughter. She didn't say a word to Gale, and barely glanced in his direction, but when she did she often found him looking back at her. He would usually give her that gorgeous smile, but she would look away quickly before he started laughing.

The celebrations ended at a reasonable hour because they all had class or work in the morning. As her friends said goodbye, Madge bade them all a hasty goodbye and hurried to bed so that she wouldn't be left alone with Gale, who it turned out was staying on their couch for a few nights.

"I meant to tell you," Katniss had apologized.

Try as she might, Madge could not get to sleep.

She was completely mortified about mistaking Gale for a stripper. She felt so incredibly stupid. Every time she remembered, her cheeks heated up and she wanted to die all over again.

To make matters worse, he seemed like a really great guy. The type of guy that she could really fall for, if she hadn't made such a terrible first impression.

After about an hour of tossing and turning, Madge sat up to get a drink of water, and realized that in her haste to get away from an awkward encounter with Gale, she had forgotten to bring her bottle of water with her.

Well, she'd just have to die of thirst because there was no way she was going back out there again.

Unfortunately, now that she knew she couldn't have a drink, her stupid body wanted one more than ever, and after trying fruitlessly to ignore her thirst for thirty minutes, Madge climbed out of the bed.

It had been almost two hours. Most likely Gale would be asleep. She'd heard him say he was tired. She'd sneak into the kitchen, grab her water and sneak back. She visualized the layout of the living room and plotted her path.

She crept out of her room and into the living room. She could make out Gale's form, bundled under a blanket on the couch. She tiptoed across the room and eased up the fridge door. A couple of beer bottles standing on the door clinked together and she threw a glance over her shoulder to see if Gale had stirred.

The light from the fridge hit him perfectly, displaying his bare torso. Madge was hit with a bolt of desire. She couldn't stop staring.

"Wow, you are determined to see me naked this evening," came Gale's husky voice.

Madge shrieked and slammed the fridge door shut. "I'm sorry to disturb you, I was just getting some water," she said as she scampered back across the room.

"Wait," Gale called. He fumbled at the lamp on the end table beside the couch and switched it on.

Madge tried her hardest not to stare at him, but it was so hard. His body was perfection. It wasn't fair.

Gale propped himself up on his elbow. His eyes traced over her bare legs. Madge wished she'd thought to put on something a little sexier before coming out here.

"I'm really sorry about earlier," Madge said, before Gale could say anything. "I feel so dumb."

"It's fine, really," Gale told her. "I thought it was very flattering. And a huge relief."

"Really? Why?" Madge braved a step closer.

Gale beckoned her closer still. He sat upright on the couch so he could face her better. "I've been looking forward to meeting you for a while... Katniss has spent a lot of time talking you up. I... you sounded like somebody I wanted to get to know. And then she showed me your picture and you're gorgeous. So I was excited about meeting you. Normally I wouldn't wear my dress uniform like I did today, but Catnip said you'd get a kick out of it and I wanted to make a good first impression."

"Uh..." Madge's heart was hammering in her chest.

Gale continued on. "But, honestly, I felt like a tool in it. And then everything was so weird between us at first and I thought it was because I was so nervous and making a bad impression."

"No, you made a great first impression," Madge protested. "Too great. You in a uniform, wow. You melted the wiring in my brain or something, because I am not normally that stupid."

Gale laughed. "So I was thinking, that we should just stop being embarrassed by what happened and agree that it was funny."

Madge shifted on her feet. "I'll try, but it's going to be hard because that was really embarrassing for me... I can see why it was funny for everyone else though."

"That's the spirit," he grinned. "Can we try again?"

"Yes, please, I'd like that."

Gale threw back the blanket that was covering him and stood up. Then he cringed. "Man, I wish I'd remembered that I'm only wearing briefs before I did that."

Madge giggled. "It's dark, and I have poor eyesight, I can't really see anything," she lied.

"OK, that would be more convincing if you weren't drooling right now," Gale teased.

"Sorry," Madge blushed. She diverted her gaze to his face.

"I don't really mind," he said with a laugh. He stood in front of her and held out his hand. "Hi, I'm Gale. I'm a friend of Katniss and I'm in the army."

Madge took his hand, feeling the thrill of electricity she always felt when he touched her. "I'm Madge. I'm really pleased to meet you."

"You would like to have dinner with me tomorrow night?"

Madge smiled. "I'd love to."

Gale smiled at her again. "I guess, I'll see you in the morning." He hesitated for a moment before leaning down and kissing her cheek, his lips lingered against her skin. "Happy birthday."

He pulled away but Madge caught his arm and halted his movement. She ran her gaze over his broad chest, toned stomach and lower. When she raised her eyes to his face, he was watching her with darkened eyes. It was hard to tell in the low light of the room, but she was pretty certain he was blushing. She couldn't figure out why she wasn't.

She shrugged playfully. "What? It's my birthday."

Gale grinned before he climbed back into his makeshift bed and clicked off the lamp. "Play your cards right and you might see the full monty tomorrow."

"Here's hoping," Madge giggled before skipping back to bed.


End file.
